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Buy now, pay later continues to be a hot option as retailers look for ways to entice shoppers to buy more and increase online conversions and in-store traffic.
Afterpay Ltd. announced Wednesday that its fifth bi-annual Afterpay Day promotion will include brick-and-mortar retailers for the first time. The event is scheduled to run for an extended four-day period March 25-28.
Consumers paying with Afterpay will receive discounts up to 70% and can spread their payments over four installments interest-free. In addition, new retailers will be partnering with Afterpay, including Steve Madden, MAC Cosmetics, Jo Malone London, Aveda, origins, and Vera Bradley. These retailers will offer e-commerce and in-store promotions to Afterpay customers.
During the last Afterpay Day, participating merchants saw average sales increase 36% and new customers grow by 46%. In December 2020, 45 million customer referrals were sent to retailers globally from the Afterpay Shop Directory.
Consumers can visit the Shop Directory on the Afterpay app and Afterpay.com to access promotions and discounts from participating merchants, as well as locate participating merchants near them.
In related news, Flexiti Financial, a Toronto-based provider of consumer-financing software at the point-of-sale, announced Wednesday that specialty-mattress retailer Sleep Country Canada Holdings Inc. is offering Flexiti’s omni-channel zero-percent interest financing. Consumers can apply for a FlexitiCard at Sleep Country’s 280 locations throughout Canada. The card features a revolving credit line and flexible payment plans. Sleep Country customers will also be able to apply for a card online starting in the second quarter.
“Flexiti’s on-demand [zero-percent] financing solution provides an added level of financial comfort for our customers,” Stewart Schaefer, chief business development officer for Sleep Country Canada said in a prepared statement.
Despite the growing popularity of buy now, pay later financing, consumers have yet to show loyalty to one particular provider. About 60% of BNPL shoppers use more than one BNPL app, says Zip Co. Ltd, an Australian-based provider of BNPL financing. Its service is marketed as Quadpay in the United States.
The primary reason for the lack of consumer loyalty is the exclusive relationships many BNPL providers have cultivated with retailers. Shoppers are signing up for multiple apps so they can use them at all the stores they frequent.
Another reason for multiple BNPL apps is to gain access to a broader array of incentives and promotions from different BNPL providers, as well as different payment options that can allow them to spread payments out further, Zip says. Consumers have also stated they prefer to use some BNPL apps for larger purchases and others for smaller purchases.
